For many, Happy Days is one of the best sitcoms of all time and is considered one of the greatest cult series of the 1970s. It revolves around a group of teenagers in an idealized version of the 1950s and 1960s, including “Fonzie” Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler) and Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard).
In 1978 the makers planned the figure of an alien to introduce you to the world of the series. As Henry Winkler told the Fake Doctors, Real Friends podcast in 2024, no one wanted the role of the bizarre alien named Mork.
Nobody wanted to play the role. It’s Wednesday and we were supposed to shoot on Friday. Finally, a very shy, quiet man comes in with the casting director. […] And then this person picked up the script. When he opened his mouth it was, as if a volcano had erupted at the Paramount studio. Then I knew: ‘Stay out of his way, know your lines and don’t mess with this genius who is standing in front of you now.’
Here you will find external content from YouTubewhich complements the article. You can display it and hide it again with one click.
Williams’ role was so well received that she soon got her own spin-off, Mork the Orc. The offshoot made him a superstar, especially among young viewers: His alien became a pop culture phenomenon, appearing on lunchboxes and billboards.
However, it would take a while before Robins became a big star on the big screen: His big breakthrough came in 1987 with the war comedy Good Morning, Vietnam. Today he is recognized as a comedy genius who also mastered serious and even disturbing roles like in One Hour Photo.
The fact that some today don’t know about his crazy beginnings in Happy Days is basically just a proof of his immense talent: Hardly any other filmography is as packed with so much bubbling, masterful creativity as Williams’. You can sometimes lose track of things.